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  <front>

    <journal-meta>

      <journal-title>Asian Journal of Biochemistry</journal-title>

      <issn pub-type="ppub">1815-9923</issn>

      <issn pub-type="epub">1815-9931</issn>

      <publisher>

        <publisher-name>Academic Journals Inc.</publisher-name>

      </publisher>

    </journal-meta>


    <article-meta>

      <article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.3923/ajb.2007.415.420</article-id>


      <title-group>

        <article-title><![CDATA[Possible Functional Roles of Exposed Sulfhydryl Groups in Malted and Unmalted African Finger Millet Seed (<I>Eluesine coracana</I>) &#946;-amylase]]></article-title>

      </title-group>


      <contrib-group>

        <contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple">


          <name name-style="western">

            <surname>Kolawole</surname>

            <given-names>Ayodele O.</given-names>

          </name>


          <name name-style="western">

            <surname>O. Ajele</surname>

            <given-names>Joshua</given-names>

          </name>


        </contrib>

      </contrib-group>


      <pub-date pub-type="collection">


        <month>6</month>




        <year>2007</year>

      </pub-date>


      <volume>2</volume>

      <issue>6</issue>


      <abstract><![CDATA[<p>The behavior of exposed sulfhydryl groups of &#946;-amylase from malted and unmalted African finger millet seed was investigated for their possible functional roles by chemical modification studies using 5,5&#146;-dithiobis-(2-nitro-benzoic acid) (DTNB). The malted and unmalted enzyme purified by &#945;-cyclodextrin Sepharose 6B affinity column chromatography was inhibited by the sulfhydryl reagent. The chemical modification study revealed that there were three sulfhydryl and four sulfhydryl groups in &#946;-amylase from both unmalted and malted seed, respectively each having one exposed sulfhydryl group; performing different roles and were essential for catalytic activity. The result shows a distinction between the <I>in situ </I>&#946;-amylase from unmalted seed and <I>de novo</I> &#946;-amylase in malted seed synthesized during malting. The malted seed &#946;-amylase was oxidatively dimerized by subjecting it to 0.3 M potassium ferricyanide in 3.0 M urea. The dimerized enzyme was inactive. The result from the DTNB chemical modification study of the exposed sulfhydryl group in the &#946;-amylase purified from malted African finger millet seed before oxidation of the group shows that the sulfhydryl group is involved in the formation of dimers.</p>]]></abstract>


    </article-meta>

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